Isaiah 6:8

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Friday, December 21, 2012

Quieted by His Presence by Cara Putman

Welcome to
the 12 Pearls of Christmas blog series!

Merry Christmas
from Pearl Girls™! We hope you enjoy
these Christmas “Pearls of Wisdom” from the authors who were so kind to donate
their time and talents! If you miss a few posts, you’ll be able go back through
and read them on this blog throughout the next few days.

It's the week
after Thanksgiving. We're racing toward Christmas. Even with
Thanksgiving occurring a week early, it feels like a race. When did
we decide this organized (or not so organized) chaos was restful, relaxing,
conducive to a joyful season?

When did the joy
of gifting something to one we love become replaced by the pressure to find the
perfect gift? When did the amount of the gift matter more than spirit it is
gifted in? At times like these I need a reason to remember that God can calm my
heart when I feel like I'm spilling in a bazillion different directions.

Grab a mug of tea
or cup of coffee. I'll share my peppermint mocha creamer. It's low-sugar. And
let's sit together and soak in this truth.

The Lord is
with us. With us.
Emmanual. The God with us. Savor that. He's with us. Not watching us. With us.

He is mighty
to save. He doesn't
barely save. He is mightily prepared to save.

He will take
great delight in you.
Think about a child. Yours or someone else's. Think about the joy that child
brings to his parents. That is a pale shadow of the depth of delight God takes
in you. Humbled? Thrilled? I am!

He quiets us
with His love. He will,
if we'll let Him. It is His will to quiet us with love. Like a child who is
content and secure in the knowledge of her parents' love. That's how He wants
us to rest. To be quiet. In His presence. At His feet.

He will
rejoice over us with singing. Think of your favorite artist, group, chorus. Think of how their
voices resonate and harmonize. Remember how you are swept away by the beauty of
a voice raised in song. Then imagine God singing a special song over you. Then
consider that it's a song of rejoicing. Just because you are. A song to you.

Now that you've
quieted in His presence, are you ready to go back to preparations. Ready to
focus on Him? To find Him in the midst of the Christmas chaos? Because He is
the baby in the manager. He is the reason we celebrate. And He's celebrating
you!

***

Cara Putman is an author of fourteen
novels and one nonfiction work—plus all the characters and stories still
begging to be told. Look for more in the future. She is also a licensed
attorney, contract lecturer at a Big Ten University, adjunct faculty at a
community college, and active in her church and community. She lives with her
family in Indiana.

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Who Am I? I Wonder Myself Sometimes

I am a woman who wears many hats and loves them all. I am a singer - I sing with the group Still Magnolias. I was part of the original First United Methodist Church Arbor Praise Team until we moved. After 24+ years of teaching English 11 and Spanish I - II at Benjamin Russell High School I decided to take a job closer to home. I now teach Spanish I & 2 at Randolph Co. High School and Wadley. I thought I was getting close to retirement and looking forward to it, but decided to move my cheese and try something different. I am a preacher's wife and a preacher myself. My husband Frank is the pastor at Rock Mills United Methodist Church and I am the pastor at Midway (Wedowee). It has made our conversations interesting, to say the least.